CHAPTER XVII.

YANGTZE NOTES.

I.-ICHANG.

BY E. A. ALDRIDGE, M.R.C.S.

CHANG is situated on the right bank of the Yangtze about 370 miles above Hankow. Its surroundings are picturesque in the extreme, but the place offers few attractions to the sportsman. There is, however, some fair snipe shooting to be had in the low-lying paddy and in the cotton fields when the migrants put in their spring and autumn appearance.

The autumn snipes begin to arrive in the middle of August, and the best shooting is to be had in September in the paddy stubbles and the cotton fields. The number of birds depends greatly upon whether or not September has been a wet month. In April, May and the early part of June a certain number of spring snipes may be bagged, for they seem to stay longer with us than in ports farther east, and an occasional bird is seen during the winter. With regard to pheasant shooting, except as an inducement for a long tramp, it is hardly worth the trouble to look for them in the immediate neighbourhood of Ichang. An odd bird may, however, be flushed anywhere on the surrounding hills. The absence of sufficient feeding ground seems to be the reason for this scarcity of birds. At the Tiger's Tooth Gorge, north bank of the river, I have brought down at the most three or four in a morning among the long grass, firs, small oaks and chestnuts. At Nanl'o, 16 miles up-river, the same number may perhaps be got. At Hope Island and thereabouts, below Chihchiang, a good bag has been made, but it is necessary to go there before the grass and reeds are cut. Native gunners supply our small market: 200 birds a season would be about the limit of their sales. That they have found no better ground has been proved by accompanying them into the country and paying well for all birds shot or even seen. The hills are mostly of conglomerate formation, and their sides strewn with loose stones, so that the ground is very rough for walking, while the grass then in seed may prove a perpetual source of annoyance to both gun and dog, nothing being seen like it at the other ports on the Yangtze. It is hardly right to shoot over long-haired dogs until the winter has well set in, for even with constant attention to feet, mouth, ears and eyelids, it is almost impossible to prevent small abscesses forming afterwards from the seeds working under the skin. In my experience a short-haired French pointer has proved the best dog to work with.

Wild-fowl shooting is about on a par with that of pheasant shooting. Hundreds of duck, teal, and often geese, may be seen at the upper parts of the flat sandy island that shows up at low water opposite the Pagoda, but they are most difficult of approach. Birds may be occasionally shot at the mouth of the "unknown river "-so called from no foreigner having as yet explored the source of the stream. Higher up among the rapids ducks are also often seen. On the banks off Sunday Island (about 120 miles below

Ichang) the wild-fowl shooting must be very fine, for the natives will sometimes sell five wild-geese for a dollar, duck for a mere song, and often the lesser bustard which is delicious eating.

Woodcocks were formerly shot at Nanchingkuan, 3 miles up river, behind the large temple, but these birds have seldom been seen there of late years. Sometimes an old bird is flushed in the ditches south of the "Camp."

There are a few quail and plenty of doves within a short distance of the city.

There are no deer near Ichang. The only one I have seen was far up the "unknown river' among the lower hills to the north. It was out of range, but seemed of good size and considerably larger than the ordinary river deer.

Hares are frequently put up on the hills around. It may be asked "What about the beautiful long-tailed Reeves', the lovely golden and sturdy Tragopan pheasants; the leopards, tigers, and the mountain chamois?" The best answer to such questions will be to say a few words about the relation of each to Ichang and its vicinity.

Ten years ago the so-called "Monastery" valley, five miles below the Settlement on the south bank, was famous for Reeves' pheasant; but those days are over, and the valley, I believe, contains this pheasant no more. They are occasionally flushed on the higher ground above Nanl'o. Changyang offers a much more promising field for these birds. From tip of beak to end of tail, I have seen a specimen measuring 6 feet 10 inches.

The golden pheasant is not of local origin but is often come across on the borders of this province, and is not unfrequently offered for sale in our streets. Tragopans do not breed here but are now and then brought down from far west.

The thickly wooded district of Changyang, about three days' journey on the south bank of the river, ought certainly to be tried for big game, such as wild-pig, leopards and tigers; and, judging from Mr. Pratt's interesting account of his visits to those parts in his work, To the Snows of Tibet through China, there ought to be very fine sport, and this, too, without much danger, for I have never heard of natives having been attacked by any wild beasts.

Chamois shooting on the high hills is disappointing. A sure foot and clear head are indispensable, and as these wary animals are few and the shots usually long and difficult, the trip is often unsuccessful. About China New-year, with a little snow on the mountains, is the best time for this kind of shooting, the brush-wood that grows on the sides of the steep cliffs is not so dense then and allows of a better chance of seeing anything along the ledges of the limestone rocks. At first I shot with an ordinary small-bore magazine Winchester, afterwards with a Martini-Henry rifle, but finally I got out from home a '450 rifle-125 grains powder and 300 grains "express" bullet. This weapon proved a great success.

The Rev. Père Heude has kindly named one of these chamois after myself-the Kemas aldrigeanus-and a specimen is described by him in Les Memoires concernant l'Histoire Naturelle de l'Empire Chinios.

From this short account it will be recognized that Ichang is not a happy hunting ground for the sportsman who only shoots for the sake of the bag, but the ever-changing scene of "gigantic mountains

rough with crags," charming glen and secluded vale, awe-inspiring gorge and gloomy chasm, foaming rapid and whirling eddy will compensate the true lover of Nature's handiwork for his want of success with the gun. Let him, with gun and rifle, bring his net and collecting box, drying paper and camera, and include in his programme the always exciting trip over the Yangtze rapids, and he will acknowledge on his return that loss of time and money have been well repaid.

CHAPTER XVII-Continued.

YANGTZE NOTES.

II. HANKOW.

By A. L. ROBERTSON.

ANKOW, the great tea port, is situate at the apex of the angle formed by the confluence of the Han and Yangtze rivers, 600 miles above Woosung. Behind the city are vast plains subject to periodical inundation by the overflowing of these two great waterways. In the autumn the waters recede in sympathy with the river fall, and the low lying portions of the plain become marshes or lagoons in whose neighbourhood the sportsman very frequently 'happens" on excellent sport. Unfortunately the seasons vary, and when in one season five or six couples of snipes will be regarded as an average bag, in another 18 couples will not be considered anything extraordinary. Hankow boasts of no other than snipe shooting, and on occasions highly satisfactory bags are made. Two of the best in my recollection are 27 couples from daylight to 10.30 A.M. on one day, 20 couples between 2.30 and 5 P.M. on another, by a single gun.

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As a rule, whether in May or in September the mid-day heat is too great to admit of shooting with any degree of comfort, and the wise man is he who does not tempt Providence. My custom was during both the spring and autumn snipe seasons to start in a boat a little before daylight, drop down the river with the current about two miles and shoot inland to a place locally known to foreigners as "The Huts," where a pony awaited me to take me back to Hankow, thus saving a long tramp home. At the period of which I am writing (1874-1882) there were long marshy grass plains surrounding "The Huts" on which very good sport was often to be had. Sportsmen who have no knowledge of the country often go out and do not see a feather, while one who knows the spots the birds haunt will often make a good bag. Another excellent place is on the south bank of the river opposite the French Consulate, where there is a lake on whose margin really good snipe shooting is often to be had. The drawback to shooting in this part of the country, however, is that the birds get very wild from being disturbed by the natives whose business is netting them. The method is very simple. Two men drag a net some 30 feet long, in appearance much like a lawn-tennis net, which disturbs the birds and catches them on the rise; the birds are then secured and taken to the market and sold alive.

Some very good bags have been made on the margins and in the vicinity of the lakes at the back of the city of Wuchang, but getting there necessitates a house-boat and being away for a night. One very notable bag was that of a naval officer who killed 50 couples of the long bills with a muzzle-loading gun during a Saturday to Monday trip. It was here, too, that two guns bagged 80 quail in a couple of hours. Towards the end of their stay snipes are comparatively easy shooting, as by that time.

they have become fat and lazy and fly slowly. At this time they are more likely to be found amongst the crops than in the marshes, and having to rise abruptly to get clear of the cover afford the gun a fairly easy shot.

There is practically no pheasant shooting at Hankow, though a bird or two may occasionally be picked up round Wuchang or beyond the foreign bungalow at Hanyang. A visit is sometimes paid to Kinkow, 15 miles up the river, but the shooting area there is so limited, confined as it is to a very small range of hills, that after two or three shooting parties have paid it a visit it is commonly agreed that the place has been shot out. An occasional deer is bagged here, and in some seasons quail are fairly plentiful. On the opposite side of the river to Kinkow the sportsman may come across hares, and four-and-a-half brace, I know, have been bagged in a day. Pheasants are seldom met with. Some low hills called "The Bluffs" a few miles below Hankow, are occasionally visited, but it is rarely that the gun commands, though he may deserve, success.